Merchants' Hall, Bridgegate

Mitchell Library, Glasgow Collection

The Merchants' Hall was built in 1659 on the south side of Bridgegate. The ground floor was taken up by shops whilst the first floor contained the main hall which was used primarily for meetings. The hall was said to have been 80 feet long with portraits of eminent benefactors to the poor on the walls and a model of a ship hanging from the centre of the ceiling. Old and destitute merchants were also housed on the premises.

The main body of the building was taken down in 1818 to make way for tenements. The Merchants' Steeple (erected in 1665) was spared and in 1886 an extension to the fish market was built around it. The steeple is 164 feet tall and Gothic in style, apart from the upper ballustrades which have a Renaissance flavour. The clock, at the top of the first section of the tower is of molten brass and the spire is mounted with a copper ship on a globe (the badge of the Merchants' House) in place of a weathervane.

Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 941.435 GOR

Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning